


The Perks of Working in the Cafe Opposite Your University

by sixthdaydream



Category: Day6 (Band)
Genre: Cafe AU, M/M, Strangers to Friends to Lovers, briwoonweek19, day1
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-06
Updated: 2019-09-06
Packaged: 2020-10-11 00:44:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,727
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20537366
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sixthdaydream/pseuds/sixthdaydream
Summary: Following Dowoon's life, he lists down reasons why he likes working the cafe opposite his university; one of them being a boy he sees frequently.





	The Perks of Working in the Cafe Opposite Your University

Working in the cafe opposite your university had its perks; one of them being that I get to see that one guy on a daily basis. Sure, I worked at the cashier often and sure, I had to write down people's name for their orders but I never could muster the courage to do all those things I was expected to when the doors opened to his oh-so-familiar figure. Nope, somehow Yoon Dowoon always managed to chicken out and beg his friend slash co-worker Park Jaehyung to do it instead. Without fail, Jae would have a sly smirk on his face when taking said-guy's order which somehow always turns me into a blob of a mess even though I'm not the one doing it. What's worse is that I don't even know his name despite Jae's constant teasing of wanting to tell me.

(hint: I never let Jae do it — somehow it feels too personal to know his name when he probably doesn't even know of my existence).

Despite all these adversities, I get to see him working on his assignments at His Spot at least once a week and now that I think of it, that sounds kinda creepy but I'll take what I can get. Maybe it's a little sad, Yoon Dowoon admiring some heart-throb who's probably a few years older than him, no balls to strike conversation or even take his damn order but maybe it's safer like that because after all, we're just two strangers who know nothing of each other.

But what's stupider in this charade I'm playing with myself is that I feel as if I could really know him — that every short glance I get, is a key to unlocking the secrets of this unknown man; every time the doorbell chimes and he enters, it feels as if time stops and we're stranded in this game called Life together. I can't explain this attraction I have towards him; as if we're two opposite poles attracting one another. But I know all of this is just a sad dream of something that will never happen and with that all the fantasies begin to shatter and I'm brought back to reality.

\--

  
Working in the cafe opposite your university had its perks; one of them being that it gets deserted during the weekends. When I work during this, I take the opportunity to play some sick beats using Bluetooth and start to air-drum as if I belonged to some renowned band. Too focused into my drum solo, I couldn't hear the footsteps of someone entering till a second too late. Fumbling with my phone as I try to hit the pause button, my eyes shot up to see who was disrupting my jamming session and my heart rate quickened to an incredibly dangerous rate.  
It was him.

And he was smiling a little too much — as if a secret could burst out of him any second, "Hey," he'd said.

Feeling my temperature rise, I ignore the sudden heat from my ears but it was to no avail. "C-can I get your order?" I asked. Damn, why did I stutter like a lost lamb? Yoon Dowoon, you can't be lame twice on the same goddamned day. Lord have mercy on me.

"Oh, yeah, an iced americano please," he replies, still smiling as he handed me the exact change for the drink.

Ignoring how his eyes begin to shape themselves to crescents — no longer had he possessed those feline eyes; I push the cashier buttons and hand the receipt to him.  
Getting ready to make the drink, a voice squeaks behind me, "you're not gonna ask me my name?"

"Well... You're the only customer right now, so I don't think that's necessary, sir." With that, I'm met with silence as I begin preparing the drink. The silence fills the air, mirroring the caffeine aroma which diffuses around the cafe. It's daunting, the man I've been interested in since a while ago is finally behind me, and I'm finally, finally taking his order yet it doesn't seem to go as how I'd always imagined it to be. Maybe I've been watching too many romance movies with Jae; always knew those things were bad for the heart.

As I'm done preparing, I bring it to the counter, only to see him waiting with all his bags instead of sitting down like usual. "Here you are, have a nice day."

"Thank you, Dowoon. I'm Younghyun, by the way." He says all to easily; contrasting the hard beating going on in my heart.

Before I could think of a witty reply, he's gone for the door, coffee in hand. As the door opens to a breezy wind, I'm left flabbergasted by the events of today. They weren't much, but it was enough to fill my heart with warmth as if I was drinking hot cocoa on a cold winter night; I'd like to believe that was what I'd now like to call The Younghyun Effect (or maybe I'm just so stupidly in love with a stranger — or should it be acquaintances now?) But whatever it was, maybe it wasn't so bad being caught air-drumming to one of Teddy Campbell's drum solos.

\--

Working in the cafe opposite your university had its perks; one of them being that I can do shifts right after class — lame, but I'm just another student working off their loans. Coincidentally, Younghyun comes to the cafe during these times and with Jae's lack of appearance; I'm forced to take his orders several time over this past month.

  
If you're wondering how I managed to always avoid doing this since of recently, I just had to make sure Jae's shifts and mine clashed which wasn't as difficult as it sounds. You see, Jae's a PoliSci 4th year, with his senior year looming in soon he's busy just prepping for internships and going for his debate clubs so I've got his whole schedule stored in my mind. Easy.

But now that I've done it, maybe it's not that bad as I'd initially thought and I can somewhat hold proper conversations with him without stuttering like a fool. Pretty good if I said so myself. But because Younghyun comes at times when we're mostly busy, we usually just talk over the counter when he's ordering; that's still a big leap for Yoon Dowoon though. He could never imagine having actual conversations with the guy. Daresay, I find Younghyun even more interesting than what I first thought; 3rd year into Business Administration, he tells me all about some wacky professor who watches him like a hawk. Apparently, Younghyun's the kind of top student that rarely studies (ugh, hate those) and the professor is just waiting for him to mess up.

Speaking of the devil himself, I see Younghyun entering the cafe with a huge smile on his face as he yells my name and gleefully fast-walks to the counter, "Dowoon-ah!" he calls out as I flinch at the sudden affection.

I've had friends who show me bursts of affection like my classmate Wonpil, who, is extremely loving by the way. He's a real good guy, has enough love to go around. But yeah, I'd never have taken Younghyun for one of those affectionate guys and I've seen him here a lot with his friends and he's not the one who shows it as often as they do (granted he does reciprocate generously).  
Looking up towards him I answer, "yeah?"

He reaches to the counter and takes something out of his bag, a piece of paper that has 'Seoul Summer Carnival' in big fonts, "this starts today, are you free after work?"

My mind begs to press for details but I internally scold myself. There was nothing to look into — we were just friends. And what were the odds of Younghyun even having a spark of interest in me? It's true when they say humans are greedy creatures that can never be satisfied with what they already have, because that's what Yoon Dowoon is doing right now and I'm sure my parents didn't raise me to be like this.

So, clearing all my thoughts, determined to not ask for more from the Lord, I said yes. (Sounds like I accepted a proposa—too much even for my own thoughts). Seeing Younghyun breathe a sigh of relief lifts up my spirit as well and I begin counting away the hours till the end of my shift as Younghyun walks away, sitting at His Spot mouthing an 'I'll be right here'.

Time moved quickly as I worked, taking an array of orders for familiar and non-familiar faces. When opportunities presented themselves, I took a good glance at Younghyun and all of his features – something I haven’t gotten the chance to do in a while. He’s still got that crook-ish-somewhat-straight nose and seems to be looking wistfully outside, panning out to become a scene out of a movie. It makes me wonder where I am in all of this; whether my role is even slightly significant. The notification on my phone breaks my reverie as I receive a text from Younghyun, ‘I know I’m handsome but focus on work, you have a few minutes left ;)’. My heart speeds up and I immediately go back to focusing on the job, hoping that Younghyun can’t see the heat get to my face.

As Jae comes into the cafe, Younghyun stands up and they’re both approaching me; one looks eager while the other is tired. Knowing it was the end of my shift and the start of Jae’s I pat him on the back and give him a knowing glance as I had to the back and get my stuff all the while ignoring the smirks Jae gives me despite his fatigue accumulated from lectures. In the back room, I try to look mildly presentable but the dark circles around my eyes fail me; well, it’s already evening so they won’t be as visible (hopefully). Feeling satisfied and having taken my things, I walk out only to see Younghyun waiting outside already. I stride to the door but not before Jae returns my pat on the back with his own while wishing me luck. Not sure why though, we’re just hanging out as friends. Yeah, friends. That was it.

\--

Working in the cafe opposite your university had its perks; one of them being that it gives me a chance to befriend students who come here frequently. Now, I didn’t dare label myself as a socialite but I’m pretty well off in the socialising department especially now that I’m friends with Younghyun, who, is probably friends with every other student on campus. Okay, maybe a little exaggeration because Younghyun wasn’t really my friend till two months ago? That little carnival thing he pulled me into going made me realize maybe it wasn’t so bad to just be his friend. Well, of course, some days my whole being disagrees with this – especially when my heart beats a little more for him occasionally but I’ve grown comfortable around him. And I won’t let Feelings cause a havoc.

Younghyun usually comes every day in the evenings once classes finish but lately that cycle seems disrupted seeing how he has rarely showed up for the past week. It makes me feel a little lonely at times but also sheds light on how I’ve become accustomed to Younghyun’s presence which was not ideal. Being accustomed meant he had somewhat become a comfort zone for me and those were difficult to leave. Especially since I wasn’t sure how long Younghyun would stay in my life as friends; friends were bound to leave you one day, right? So, the next time I saw him, which was four days after this epiphany, I try my best to remain nonchalant – as if I hadn’t even realised. Unfortunately, the sight that unfolded in front of me shatters whatever piece of sanity I had left; a girl had his harm wrapped around Younghyun’s, who was smiling happily as ever being in their own bubble. Once Younghyun and Her got a place to sit, he came over to the counter to order but not before She whispers in his ears and received a thumbs up from him.

"One iced americano, yeah?"

He nodded and continued, "Also a caramel macchiato please. Anyways, Dowoon, I'd like to consider us friends now. And as friends, I tend to overshare," he takes in a deep breath, "so would you mind going on a double date with me? Because someone asked me out and I'm curious about something."

I'm not sure whether I heard him properly over the sound of my heart breaking at the sudden news. Surely, Younghyun gets asked out a lot because I mean — he's Younghyun for crying out loud and from the things I've gathered throughout our conversations, he's a pretty great guy. Of course, someone was bound to ask him out.

What I didn’t get was why he asked me. He's Younghyun for God's sake — he must have had a million other friends to ask. The thought of this further soured my mood and I felt the creases forming on my forehead. But, as you may know, friends don’t decline another friend’s invitation just because it’s weird. Or because they might Feel something for them so I end up doing what any Good Friend would do: I accepted his invitation for a double date.

Fast forward to the present Younghyun, Jane (finally found out Her name), Amber (Jane’s friend) and I are heading out to lunch before going to the movies. I’d like to say it was a mismatched couple, Younghyun and Jane (what would be their ship name? JaYun? Didn’t KangYoon roll off your tongue better? Though that’s besides the point) were pretty good together. Amber wasn’t so bad either – cracking a lot of jokes that made all of us laugh. It could have been even better if I wasn’t transfixed in everything Younghyun and Jane were doing’ as if they were really a couple now. Ugh.

  
The waiter comes and destroys my ugly thought bubble and everyone orders for themselves except for Jane who has Younghyun ordering for her.

Honestly? Younghyun’s pretty good at this dating stuff. I can see why girls like him – judging from the fact that they tend to turn their heads whenever he enters the cafe, or anywhere else for that matter. I’m looking at Younghyun again till he catches my gaze and I turn around and return to talking to Amber. Yet somehow, I still feel someone’s gaze boring into me – weird.

Over lunch, Amber and I talk about varying subjects of interest and I found out how we shared several mutual interests in things such as animals, memes and even drumming. Though I found out about the latter part the hard way as Younghyun brought up the topic of me air-drumming alone in the cafe a few months ago, causing me to turn a shade of red that caused even Jane to laugh and now I’m mad at Younghyun and his big mouth even though it helped break the ice. Meanwhile, Younghyun and Jane talked between themselves for awhile though I catch Younghyun glancing over me a few times too but I just turn away – I’m angry at him for spilling the beans after all.

Once lunch was over, we headed to the cinema to buy our tickets while the girls bought the snacks – giving Younghyun and I some time to talk between the two of us.

“How’s Amber?” he asks as we walked to the counter.

“She’s funny and we have a lot of things in common,” I shrug my shoulders, “thanks for introducing us.”

At this, I see Younghyun’s shoulder tensing slightly but he feigns ignorance at it and continues, “Jane’s pretty nice too. I’m thinking of going out with her again soon.”

“What movie are we watching again?” Changing the subject was a good way to not come into terms with the truth; that Younghyun only sees me as a friend. He answers me by telling the lady at the counter our desired movie. Two couple seats, one behind the other. Before I could choose where Amber and I wanted to sit, the two girls came back to us and Jane took the front seats. Which meant I had to see Younghyun and Jane snuggling it up for two whole dreadful hours. Great.

Working in the cafe opposite your university had its perks – but it didn’t prepare me for any of this. Pretty sure no part time job could prepare me for it and I was right. Walking into the theatre had already made me a little sick, maybe it was the chicken I ate during lunch. Excusing myself to the toilet, Younghyun follows me to check if I’m okay and I get frustrated at him. I needed my space; which has been invaded by Younghyun since he came into the cafe one winter’s day. Despite him being a complete stranger, he managed to disrupt my thoughts daily. Now, he’s my friend and he’s even better at doing it.  
“You should go back into the theatre,” I say halfway to the toilet as I turn around to see his worried eyes.

“Dowoon… you’ve been avoiding me today, when our eyes meet, you look away. Are you okay?”

It’s something about the ‘are you okay’ questions that always breaks the wall for us humans. I’ve read and it’s a fact people tend to let their feelings out once hearing those words; maybe Younghyun read the same article as well. Proving the article true, I huffed, “No. I’m not okay. Why’d you even invite me to this date anyway? You have a ton of other friends – don’t lie,” I pause, “so, why’d you invite me when you full well probably know I like you?” Seemed like I proved the article’s fact a little too much. The words were out and I can’t abort this mission anymore.  
Anticipating something some ‘shocking’ answer from him, I only receive a smile. “Why are you smiling?”

He smiles a little more, a barely audible “the mission was a success,” comes out from his mouth – why was he going in circles even now? Unable to understand, I press him to answer why he was smiling while forming creases near my brows for the extra effect.

“Would it be crazy if I told you this was all a ploy for me to know your feelings? Jane and Amber played along. I didn’t know how to bring it up – so I thought… hey, why not get a date and bring Dowoon along? See how he reacts? Well, Dowoon became a little pissy but he also seemed to enjoy Amber’s company so I didn’t know,” he laughs slightly.  
My mind blacked out and I’m internally panicking. So, I decide to do something crazy, something Yoon Dowoon would never have the balls to do: he met his lips with Younghyun’s. It was a shy peck but it was still something but before I wanted to pull away, Younghyun deepens the kiss by pulling me closer to him and soon the sweetness melted away into all the pent-up feelings I’ve had for him and maybe he for me too. Just as my brain started to register the events of what was happening, he moved his mouth away but only to lean his forehead against mine and cradle my face. Dragging my eyes despite their weight like I had been drugged – I tried focusing on him. It seemed like I wasn’t the only one drugged, seeing how his eyes were hooded and how his gaze stayed fixed onto my lips. He sighed my name, causing my body to respond instantly. “I’m sorry, Dowoon.” Despite apologising, he continued to press his lips onto mine, savouring the kiss. Swaying into me, I anticipated another kiss but he straightened and dropped his hands and I missed his warmth immediately, “That was too fast, I’m sorry.”

But I had lost all his senses, my lips numb and thoughts clouded with nothing but the taste of Younghyun on his lips. Shaking my head as I tried to come back to reality, “does this mean you like me too?”  
“Like you? Dowoon, he can’t stop talking about you!” a familiar voice interrupts us and I turn to see Jane and Amber, smiling sheepishly together as they high-fived each other. “So, Younghyun, you got your confirmation, what are you planning to do now?”

Still looking a little drugged, he smiles, “I was gonna settle it and probably kiss him some more but you girls destroyed the moment,” he pauses and turns to me to wink, “but thanks for this,” he says as he locks my hand with his and heat travels to my face in a blink. This, once again, causes the lot of them to laugh as the girls woo-ed and Younghyun smiles endearingly at me, tightening his grip on my hand. Though we were politely asked to tone it down despite being in the cinema’s hallway as the girl’s woos got a little too loud but I was too preoccupied with the warmth of Younghyun. As I’d like to say, The Younghyun Effect.

  
\--

  
Working in the cafe opposite your university had its perks but none of these perks could ever compare to the feelings that rush into me whenever I see Younghyun entering the cafe. Him with his feline eyes, slightly crooked-yet-still-straight nose and those dimples that form when he sees me; this was the biggest perk of working in the cafe opposite your university. Because now, I could proudly say that this whole charade is over and I’m dating the guy I’ve been interested in since well, since a long time ago. I’m still unsure how it happened and how he suddenly developed feelings for me (Younghyun said the air-drumming really struck a chord in his heart but he’s stupid sometimes), but these questions can be answered another day.

  
A familiar voice breaks my reverie, “I’ll wait for you at my usual spot,” he says before giving me a peck on the cheek over the counter which earns a cheer from Jae (super unprofessional).

  
Surely, dating Kang Younghyun was the biggest perk of it all; followed by all the gushy feelings that come with the package.

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Briwoonweek Day One! I wanted to delve into the whole thing but I didn't have time and I didn't want my first submission to be late so... maybe next time?


End file.
